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About this Site and Me

Hi, I am an artist, wife, mom, gamer and the Elementary Art Educator at Donald Elementary, a sweet and wonderful school in Flower Mound, TX (outside of Dallas). This is a great place to see how we are integrating studio habits with technology and interdisciplinary connections.
I also love to share my "wisdom" (Re: Experiences. From mistakes.) about teaching Elementary Art.
I love what I do, and I've been doing it for a long time. Creating and teaching Art is what I live for. Enjoy.

Monday, February 10, 2014

Teaching Textiles, the 80's are calling!

I love textiles.

An oil painter since I was twelve years old, textiles opened an entire new world of creative expression. I was surprised because I had assumed, at 18, that crafts (pipe cleaners and Popsicle sticks, right?) were beneath me. But then I learned about Crafts: textiles, ceramics, glass blowing, wood working, jewelry, metal work. Oooh, thoooose.

I fell in love...

...when I was in college in south Jersey, I desperately wanted to major in Fiber Arts (oil painter, remember). I had my own floor loom in one of the weaving studios, with sunlight streaming through a sparkling weeping cherry tree, happily weaving for hours and hours...

My dad talked me out of it.

(right after I spent hundreds of dollars on the most luscious yarn. Which I might still have, just saying...)

So now I get my fix from teaching textiles to my sweet elementary kids.

Plus, with the emphasis on technology, I have noticed a distinct LACK of fine motor skills, especially with the younger students. They need this.

AND, as your students can probably tell you, not everyone loves drawing and painting. I can tell you, going into week 2, there is not one kid who is bored or complaining. Not lying. *check out 5th grade, below.

Teaching fiber arts can be a guaranteed success, if you take the time to teach the techniques slowly and properly. I start with kinder and 1st grade, and by 4th grade, they are comfortable and proficient, leading to deeper, richer content.

Students become Student Teachers and assist new or struggling students. I pop on the Enya station on Pandora, (these kids love it, sounds like video game music) and embrace the happy.

Textiles are very easy to modify to meet student needs. For example, a student who couldn't handle cup weaving did just fine with a cardboard loom, and smiled the whole time.

My favorite quote EVER came from a 3rd grader (select baseball player ^.^), who struggled with weaving a bit. He said, "Mrs. McReynolds, weaving is just not in my dictionary".

I hugged him and we laughed and I was able to modify it (instead of continuous plain weave, he used precut pieces of yarn. Problem solved.)

If fiber arts have been missing from your lesson plans, I encourage you to try it. It is a great way to teach texture, pattern, color theory, social studies/history...plus it brings a sense of calm accomplishment to your room.

Remember these? Now we are weaving with them, and the acrylic paint really made the papers substantial.

Beginner weaving tips:Do not assume kids know how to fold and cut paper. Take the time to have the kids fold their paper "hamburger style", then take a ruler and trace a line at the top (open edge)-their name goes here. If possible-have them do this, they need to learn these skills!

Using the ruler, have them draw 5 vertical lines to that first line. By cutting these lines, they will create their own loom.

Notice the baggies? Lifesaver for me. Each kid gets one and they write their name with sharpie.

Now for the weft--those strips of paper. They bring their second painting to me and I quickly chop it with the paper cutter, the strips go immediately in their baggie and then they practice "plain" or "tabby" weave.

...halfway through class...and it was SuperKid day in kinder ;)

Easily modified for children with special needs.

Early finishers are now the "student teachers" and help others (not DO, but assist).

Beautiful! But we are done yet...stayed tuned for more!

2nd Grade: Cup Weaving, Guiding ideas: color can create patterns, form and function are related, review of techniques, history and importance (you like your clothes, sheets and towels? Thank you weaving!)

Basically, you cut a plastic cup (or paper plate) with ODD numbers of slits-this is very important. On a Solo cup, I usually cut 9 or 11 slits. Just make sure the tabs are odd numbered too. Or it won't work.

I had a TON of red Solo cups, so that is what we used. Normally I would get clear or white as the red limited some color schemes.

This was fantastic! We used unbleached muslin (Joanne's with a coupon), taped to white paper. Draw the design with white glue, allow to dry, and then add color with acrylic paint or sharpies*

Draw lines with glue, allow to dry, paint with acrylics-

-nervously about to soak their batiks in water-
Yes those are Dollar Store containers on kraft paper. I was rushing. Whatever works, right?

-soak and gently scrub off glue

* if you use colored sharpies, use rubbing alcohol and cotton balls to gently rub the sharpie, they will blend and bleed and get a cool affect. Colors tend to be brighter, but you do not get the distinctive "crinkled" batik look. Wash the glue off in water.

Ok this is crazy. CRAZY. I was not prepared for how enthusiastic the kids would be. One girl teared up, I am not lying.

Currently there is a run on Joanne's and Michaels to buy latch hook supplies. HA! And now they know HOW to do it, so there is no need to buy a kit, they can design their own. Because I kinda hate the kits.

a rug I made in college...

Sizes: The latch hook on the top left is TOO BIG for elementary, 10 X 10.
When I did this as a newbie teacher, I had a student revolt on my hands. It took about 12 class periods to finish. Not good.

Kids can start with the smaller (4X4), or if they are up to the challenge, they can do the 6 X 6 or the 8 X 8. OR they can do more than one 4 X 4. *Note: most are choosing 6 X 6 and 8 X 8. Those kids choosing the 4s are planning on making a few.

I did show the kids these DIY blogs as they have clear and articulate latch hook directions but also, they show the REALITY of DIY projects (time intensive!):

Step 1: we practice. The latch hook can be a demon. I tell the kids to approach this like a "mini boss" in a video game. You know that level on Candy Crush or the monster in WoW that you can't beat? So you keep trying and trying out new techniques? It's like that. Once I said this to the kids, they all understood. This requires patience and perseverance, skills they might be lacking????

My fifth grade Art Helpers are coming in at recess to cut yarn. This works great.

Step 2 (the hardest, because they want to start!): create your design. Simple shapes and patterns are best. Use colored sharpies to color the grid fabric.

Step 3: The baggie. Everything goes in here: the practice piece, the sketch, the fabric and a handful of yarn to get started. Of course, their name and class are on the baggie ;)

Step 4: Begin! Note: usually we tape the edges, but my junky masking tape was acting up and being naughty, so I just told the kids to avoid the edges for now.

At the end of class, they didn't want to leave Art. They were moaning. I had to create a special pass to allow the kids to come to art during their recess, but only 5 at a time. Because, 5th grade. So I made this crazy pass/poster that the kids hung in their classroom and they have signed up for different days.

And now I have teachers asking me for an after school lesson...how fun is that?

UPDATE: OMGEEEEEEEE!
I wrote this post this weekend. Look what greeted me this Monday morning:

Christina designed and created this over the weekend!
YAY!
She (and mom. Thanks mom!!!!) went and bought the grid fabric, she picked out the yarn and check this out!!!!!!!

2 comments:

Hey! I have been curious about lach hook myself recently and just happened on a Pinterest link to your blog - I love it! I am completely self-taught in the realm of fiber arts, but I love it all - stitching, weaving - and the kids absolutely adore it. Looking forward to giving latch hook a try!

Thanks!! You will love it, it is great to do while watching tv ^.^ Just keep in mind that it is time intensive, so start small before you or your kids try to make an area rug ...because that takes FOREVAH. My students doing 8X8 are going to have to come in at recess a few times. Have fun and thanks for visiting!

·Flexible learning spaces: students are encouraged to sit, stand, sprawl to their hearts content, as long as they are thinking and acting as artists.

·Student work displayed in halls, online, in the community to further educate the public of the importance of Art Ed.

·Embracing the importance of STEAM education (science, technology, engineering, art and math) through knowledgeable curriculum integration, and taught by a knowledgeable master teacher.

·Seamless, meaningful integration of technology: Technology will not replace clay, painting, observational drawing, weaving, printmaking, etc. Technology is here to stay, and it can be used to make art even better!

·Using gamification and gaming as tools to allow our students to become creators, not just players.

·4th and 5th: personal iPad with access to a wide variety of technology and learning opportunities to meet 21st Century needs. This iPad travels with the student.

·MAC lab-class set for entire school use

·3 STEAM Labs

·Google Docs: used district-wide by staff and students to create and share documents. (We use Docs for our e-portfolios.)

Printing with Gelli plates

monoprints with texture and color theory

Drawing and iPads

He is using the time-lapse function to record his progress, which goes into the E-Portfolio!

Optical Illusions

3rd grade: using color and shape to create depth

Tech in the Art room

using tech to help with research, digital photography and e-portfolios